As a child growing up in rural Pennsylvania, Ash Andrews rarely had the newest toy or game. Instead, the imaginative youngster watched their parents and grandparents reuse much of what came into the house and then adopted the practice, too. Andrews learned how to create fun out of what was already there — miniature cities grew from pistachio shells and old film canisters; plastic bread bag clips became the city’s curiously shaped inhabitants.
That creative spirit never left Andrews. Today, the artist and entrepreneur is applying the same something-out-of-nothing skillset to promoting sustainability and eco-friendly resourcefulness.
Much of this is done at the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse, a nonprofit organization with an
“Nature, creativity, how we use what’s around us — it’s all interconnected,” says Andrews, whose efforts at Creative Reuse go far beyond the retail store.
In 2023, the nonprofit worked with nearly 4,700 people through in-person and virtual workshops that created opportunities to do everything from constructing playful dioramas to weaving baskets out of old newspapers. Andrews manages the Creative Reuse
“Everything is relationship based,” says Andrews. “We respond to our community’s needs and amplify the artists and organizations right here.”
Andrews began to hone this collaborative, creative philosophy while at University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, where they were able to create their own humanities major with a focus on
Facilitating reuse is a great way to build community, says Andrews.
Like the people Creative Reuse supports, Andrews knows there’s a lot you can achieve with imagination and heart, even if what you begin with doesn’t seem like much at all.